It will draw on IME’s expertise in MEMS sensors and process platform capabilities to develop industrial-grade inertial sensors and pressure sensors for adoption into a wide range of products and applications, such as electronic stability control, asset tracking, unmanned aerial vehicles, automotive and wearable devices. To achieve this, they will focus on bridging the gaps in performance, cost and size between existing industrial-grade inertial sensors and current MEMS sensors.

The consortium will also develop an aluminum nitride (AlN) frequency modulated MEMS inertial measurement unit, including a 3-axis accelerometer, a 3-axis gyroscope, a pressure sensor, as well as associated AIN inertial process platform and process design kits. AlN MEMS inertial sensors have several advantages over current MEMS sensors such as noise immunity, higher sensitivity, better linearity and simpler readout circuit design. These sensors also have a high potential in meeting industrial-grade performance requirements at a lower cost and smaller footprint.

As demand for MEMS devices in consumer, automotive and industrial sectors continues to grow, the industry faces complex challenges in developing devices with more advanced functionality, a smaller footprint and higher performance at lower cost. Research and development (R&D) in MEMS and sensor technology will be critical in addressing these challenges and paving the way for the mass adoption of MEMS devices in a wide range of applications. The MEMS market is expected to be worth more than USD 22 billion by 2018.